2018 Tour - Day 2 - Morning Report

This morning, I (Julia Beall) was one of a group of people that stayed at First UMC overnight, and as such I had to get up at about 7:00 to take a shower before the church's "Muffin Ministry", when they serve breakfast (with lots of muffins, but also cereal, other pastries, and stuff to make sandwiches) and let members of the community use their showers. This breakfast/community gathering starts at 8:00 and lasts for at least an hour, and at about 8:40 we sang Amazing Grace and Come, Unity, accompanied by a member of the church on piano. Afterwards, those of us who stayed at the church and those that stayed at host homes went to the 9:00 Connect service, an informal, smaller service with music much like the songs we play in the Youth Chapel on Sunday mornings. At that service, we sang Come Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy as well as God Has Chosen Me. After the service, we were joined by the people that stayed at the hotel, and went to the sanctuary to practice for the 11:00 traditional service. During this service, we sang Come Ye Sinners, Child of God, God Has Chosen Me, Marchin' On Up, and Praise His Holy Name (which we hadn't planned on singing, but they asked us to sing another song at the end of the service, so of course we did). Following that, we headed to the church's gym room to gather and eat lunch before our 7-hour bus ride to St. Augustine.

2018 Tour - Day 1

Today begins the pilgrimage through North Carolina/Florida for the Charles Wesley Singers. Our theme is One in Christ Jesus and our T-shirts and water bottles will remind us daily because they’ve got the logo on them. We gathered for checking in at 7:30 am and everyone was prompt! And the weather was terrific - so things are off to a great start. 

Tour 2018 got underway with a preliminary section check and blessing from retiring pastor David Cooney in the sanctuary. He reminded us all that we may not know the impact we will have but that God will use us to reach others while we travel together, singing and sharing. We gave David a standing ovation for his pastorship at DUMC and then headed for the bus. Our fleet of 3 vehicles got on the road about 8:20 am. 

Paul Lopez is our driver again this year, and we are so thankful for him. Thanks to the Tregoning family for use of their Terp Van, and the Baldridge’s minivan is making the trip and will hence be known as the Duck Van because of the lovely duct tape that graces the left rear fender. Very special.

We always share a greeting when we first board the bus, and this year’s first greeters were Connor Dennie and Angela Nardone, as determined by a spin of the famous greeting wheel. 

Tom Baldridge opened his comedy act on the bus microphone today - material ranged from lessons from previous tours to septic system discussions to the time value of money. Lots of good material. 

New bus entertainment this year will be Fruit Facts by Sydney Fennington and Torie Brooks. Today we learned that strawberries have about 200 seeds and also were believed to have healing properties by the ancient Greeks. They suggested, however, that all medicine issues on our trip be handled by Liz Elliott and our team. The report was deemed “berry informative” by Steve Kalnoske.

Brian LaRosa, our resident train expert, told us about the logo of a sleeping cat on the Chessie System trains and encouraged all to “have a good little nap, my little Chessie kittens.”

Many did nap on the bus - many played cards and video games, ate lunch, listened to music. We stopped at the Virginia Rest-stop on I 85 for a few minutes. Some folks played a minute of football, and Arthur Hulcher stood bravely atop the water cooler to sweep a broom across the top of the bus and dislodge the football that got stuck. 

Back on the bus, Katie Elliott and David Hembrough greeted us all, spreading goodwill from the front to back of the bus. We also sang happy birthday to Reid Taylor who turns 15 today.

We arrived safely in Charlotte, NC, at about 4 pm. First UMC is a tremendous structure, in size and scale - someone told us the entire place is the size of two Walmart stores put together. The church’s four floors are like a maze filled with countless unique spaces for ministry are a wonderful tapestry of welcoming messages. 

Lots of personal connections were made in a Charlotte, too. Many tour members were united with family and friends who live in Charlotte, and Caleb and Anna Mae Black joined up with us at First UMC. Our number is now 63 people! 

We had some free time to investigate the building and then gathered at 5 pm for rehearsal in the sanctuary. Our three treble soloists for the Chichester Psalms were together for the first time and sang so well, as did the whole choir as we figured out where to stand and configure ourselves. Dinner was at 6 pm - Our hosts are very lovely and welcoming and prepared a wonderful meal. We had lasagna, salad, and brownies and pound cake for dessert. Also we sang happy birthday to Reid Taylor again and he blew out all 15 candles in one breath. This is the benefit of singing of course - increased lung capacity!!

Everyone looked dapper in formal concert attire, and we began singing at 7:30 pm. We had never sung start to finish through the whole program, so it was a special night, and the audience was most responsive. Highlights (from Polly’s perspective) were the Chichester Psalms coming together well, John Hoffpauir’s saxophone solo that we all heard for the first time tonight, choir members smiling broadly when a wrong note or two sounded, soloists getting the whole group excited, and the way that sound just pours out of the choir when they get excited. Miraculous really!

We will sing at First UMC again in the morning so I had to smile when our folder cleanup crew was so efficient that the music was all cleaned up and packed up by the van before I had a chance to remind them we need the folders in the morning. But people are taking their roles seriously, and for that we are grateful. 

Pastor Val Rosenquist and other church staff have bent over backwards to accommodate us, and some of our group are staying overnight on mattresses at the church and will awaken in time to serve at a community breakfast. Others of us are in a hotel tonight, and still others went with host families. Hopefully all are asleep as I sign off! 

Good night - until tomorrow.

~ Polly

Click Here for Photos from Day 1

 Click Here for Video from the Day 1 Concert

Tour 2017 - When it Comes to Lobster, It’s OK to be Shellfish

Something about a continental breakfast makes you feel like you’re about to go out on an adventure, and boy what a time we had today. We slept in for the first time in a while today, pulling out of the good old RWUBICC around 10am with bathing suits and towels packed in day bags. We set out for the quaint town of Chatham on the elbow of Cape Cod.

Upon arrival we managed to find a place just big enough for the bus to park and began our takeover of the small beach town. Chatham Squire is my family’s favorite place to get a cup of “chowdah” on all of the Cape, so a few of us indulged in a pre-lunch lunch. Afterward the group explored the unique little shops there and made sure we had gifts for those who couldn’t make it on the trip this year. My favorite shop is the famous Candy Manor fudge shop which houses many kinds of designer candies and boast a great collection of fudge made on the premises. The smell is one of the fondest of my childhood and brings back memories of summers past and fudge consumed. Reconvening at the green area, we had a spectacular sandwich spread under a gazebo in the park there.

Once we'd had our fill, we boarded the bus for a quick ride to the Corporation Beach in Dennis. After figuring out how to fit a charter bus down a tiny beach road, everybody bolted off the bus excited to play on the beach. Sunscreen application was overscreen by our wonderful medical team (Liz, Deb, and Kay … all of whom have been doing a fantastic job of ensuring the health, hydration, and care of everyone on the trip). This beach is truly magical, and it was very fulfilling to share such an integral part of my youth with the group. Jonathan Colburn took immaculate photos of the kids in action and I encourage you to follow the link that will be provided (We hope you have been enjoying the photos provided primarily by Jonathan and Nick!).

Around five o’clock everyone admitted that they could go for a meal, and what a meal it was! The Sesuit Harbor Cafe, which overlooks the Northside Marina, is the best place to get a lobster roll, no, a lobster anything, no, just anything seafood at all, on Cape Cod. The day was absolutely gorgeous, and our friend JC ensured that we were well taken care of, just like he had done in 2009 when we had booked the whole restaurant for the night. Many of the kids had never had lobster before, and those who preferred something else had steak tips or chicken tenders. Potato salad, cole slaw, and corn on the cob ensured that our lobster feast was filling and a few of the more experienced chaperones lent a claw, er.. hand to make sure that everyone could work their lobsters and the meal went swimmingly.

After dinner we were free to walk along the beach there before boarding the bus once again for the good old RWUBICC. The ride featured a double greeting but not much else. The sun has a way of taking the energy right out of you. The only thing left on the agenda was some reflection time in the common area. There is a feeling of safety and comfortability with others that leads one to speak from the heart (Jonathan Colburn would later describe it as Holy Spirit time). It’s the most raw version of yourself that you expose to people you know will accept you no matter what. The room was full of a warm energy that surprised some, and as the discussion went on it was amazing to see who opened up and gave their burdens up to God.

It has been incredible to share this tour with all of these young people, and as we prepare to return to Damascus, I’m confident that we have achieved our goal of spreading the good Word to those in need.

"Goodnight all”
-G!

Click here for photos of day 7